He Could Be The One
by writingrox12
Summary: Nine years after Miley picks Jake, they are getting married. After a debate of whether or not to invite Jesse, she does. But what happens when he actually shows up?
1. Chapter 1

I watched the 'He Could be the One' episode and I'm pretty sure it's my favorite one. Last night, it was on again and this plot kind of came into my head. I figured it would be fun to write.

Title: He Could Be The One  
Summary: Nine years after Miley picks Jake, they are getting married. After a debate of whether or not to invite Jesse, she does. But what happens when he actually shows up?  
Pairing(s): Jake/Miley, Jesse/Miley, Lilly/Oliver, Jackson/OC.  
Warning(s): Spoilers, adult themes.

* * *

Miley had carefully inserted the rest of the invitations, all one by one, into the public mail box. Except for the one she was holding in her hand, staring down at as if it had the cure for cancer written across it. But it didn't have the cure for anything. Just one name and one address.

**_Jesse Shea_**

Miley took a deep breath as she studied the curve of the 'J' that was in Melanie's, Jackson's girlfriend, amazing calligraphy. A loud hunk behind Miley made her jump and turn around. Lilly was sitting in the passenger seat of Miley's red Volkswagen beetle.

"How much longer do you plan on standing there?" Lilly Oaken-Trescott asked. "We have to go pick up your dress before four, that way Wilma can adjust it if it doesn't fit." Lilly reminded her.

"Do you really think I should invite him?" Miley asked, looking back down at the envelope.

"Him who?" Lilly asked.

"Jesse...after what happened, I mean."

There was a bit of a silence while Lilly tried to figure out what to say. Finally, she had it.

"Miley, it was six months ago. It's not like it will happen again." Lilly asked. "_Right_?" she added in a firm voice.

"Of course right!" Miley said. "It was a mistake and it definitely won't happen again."

Miley remembered IT very well.

_It was the night of her birthday party and the entire gang, plus like, a hundred of their closest friends, had rented out a new club called Colony that had just opened up the month before. Miley didn't like the fog machine, coupled with the pounding bass of the music, coupled with the flashy strobe lights. The three things combined were giving her a serious headache, so she'd spent most of the night in a back storage room, drinking ginger ale. Every now and then, she'd walk into the crowd to make an appearance, give hugs and thanks to people for coming, open presents that people thrust into her arms, tell Jake she loved him and had to go to the bathroom._

_"You having a good birthday?" Jake said as they slow danced. The fog machine and the flashy lights were still driving her crazy._

_"Yeah. I just gotta stop drinking ginger ale. My bladder has about had it up to here." Miley said, holding her hand up. "I'll be back in a minute." she said before kissing him softly on the lips and heading towards the bathroom. She made a sharp right turn towards the storage closet and was reaching for the door knob when someone beat her to it. She looked up to see a pair of big brown eyes and a half-smile._

_"Jesse!" she gasped, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him._

_They'd been close friends for years, but over the last few, everything had been too hectic and busy for them to ever see each other. Miley hadn't even been sure that he was still living at the same address when Lily said she was inviting him to the party. Miley had almost forgotten about it until he showed up, right in between her and her safe haven._

_"Happy birthday." Jesse smiled. "Escaping?" he asked. Miley smiled guilty and nodded._

_"The bass and lights are too much for me." she said, gesturing wildly around._

_"Mind if I join--"_

_"Jesse! There you are!" an annoying squeal came from behind Miley. She looked over her shoulder to see a tall, pretty red head headed towards them. The girl wrapped her arms around Jesse's and Miley took a step back. "Hi. I'm Elenor." the girl said with a big smile. "Jesse's girlfriend."_

_"Oh. I'm Miley." Miley nodded._

_"Oh my God, the birthday girl!" Elenor grinned. "Happy Birthday!" she said loudly._

_"Thank you." Miley said._

_"El, Miley doesn't feel good. I was going to take her in here to see if there was any medicine or anything." Jesse lied smoothly. Miley rolled her eyes and Elenor nodded. _

_"Okay. I'll be by the bar. Feel better, Miley." she said sweetly before scampering away._

_Jesse sighed and opened the door for Miley, who stepped in and made room for him. He closed and locked the door._

_"She seems to really like you." Miley said as she slid to the floor._

_"Yeah.." Jesse said dryly, sitting next to her. "They always do."_

_"You don't like them?" she asked, sipping her bottle of ginger ale._

_"It's not that. I guess...I just don't like them enough." he shrugged._

_"Well...she is sort of...overbearingly nice." Miley said. "Are they always like that?" she asked._

_"No. Usually, they're normal nice. She was a last minute thing. I just didn't want to show up alone." Jesse shrugged._

_"Then why is she saying she's your girlfriend if she's just your date?" Miley asked._

_"Confused, I guess." he shrugged again._

_Miley shook her head. Jesse was a player, no two ways about it. That had been part of what had influenced her decision. He may have had eyes for only her then, but what about a week later? _

_"So...what about the other ones? The normal nice ones?" she asked._

_His gaze turned on her and Miley could only describe the look he was giving her as 'intense'. He almost looked irritated as well._

_"You really have to ask?" he said._

_"Um...yes? What's wrong with them?" she asked, tilting her head slightly._

_And then It happened. Jesse reached up and placed his hand on the crook of Miley's neck. Not possessively, but softly, tenderly. And then he brought her lips to his. What made it even worse was that Miley didn't push him away like she knew she should. Not when his hand moved from her neck to tangle in her hair, not when his tongue prodded against her lips for access, and not even when his other hand came up and held her face as their lips danced together and their tongues battled._

_And what made it the absolute worst of the worst was that Jesse was the one who had enough control to pull away. Jesse. Who had no romantic entanglements other than a confused girl at the bar. Jesse who hadn't been dating the most perfect guy for nine years. Jesse who started the kiss in the first place had ended it._

_"None of them are you." Jesse said, while Miley sat, totally speechless and completely frozen. "Happy birthday, Miley." he said before dropping a long, black velvet box into her lap._

_Without another word, he got up and left closing the door behind him. It was a few minutes before Miley gained the brain power to pick up the box and open it with a soft click. Laying across lush, black velvet was a blue topaz tennis bracelet. Her birthstone. Miley touched it softly, wishing she could tell him how beautiful it was. She snapped the box shut and stood up, throwing the door open. She threw herself into the crowd, looking around for him. Elenor wasn't by the bar. Did that mean they'd left? Dammit, Miley thought._

_Shortly after, Jake had found her and when she showed him what Jesse had gotten her, he took her to the red beetle that she'd had her eyes on for months. Ever since Jake and Jesse had met, Jake had been trying to outdo Jesse. Every present he got for Miley had to be better than the one that Jesse got her. But it was what was in the car that made Jake's present better. Sitting on the passenger seat was a square box, a note attached to it. When Miley sat in her car, she reached over and flipped the note open._

Marry me?

_Miley gasped and looked at Jake when he got into the car. Without hesitation, she threw her arms around him. "Yes! Yes! Definitely!" she squealed._

_But she couldn't help the image of Jesse that popped into her head, gazing at her with his warm fingers pressed against her neck and cheek._

It was now May twenty-third and she and Jake were getting married in three weeks after six months of preparations. And Miley couldn't be happier. She knew she was in love with Jake, and she'd never once doubted that. Except for when Jesse kissed her with no abandon and she kissed him right back.

"It was just a kiss anyways." Lilly interrupted Miley's thoughts. "Just invite him. Make it his choice to come or not." she shrugged.

Miley nodded. "You're right. It was forever ago. We can get over it. We're adults, and we can handle this in a mature adult way." Miley said, shoving the invitation in the slot.

"Even though you haven't spoken since it happened." Lilly prompted.

"Oh my God, you're right. What if he doesn't remember who Miley Stewart and Jake Ryan are? What if he doesn't live at the same address? What-"

"What if you got in the car right now and drove to the bridal store so we can make sure your dress fits right?" Lilly interrupted.

Miley nodded and climbed in. When she put her hands on the wheel, two things glinted. Her engagement ring and the tennis bracelet. She never took either off, no matter what she was wearing. The engagement ring was normal to always wear, but Miley could tell that Jake would prefer if she took the bracelet off every once in a while.

"We gonna leave?" Lilly asked.

"Yep." Miley nodded before driving off.

---

"Oh my goodness, it looks even better than I thought it would!" Wilma Tressel grinned, clapping her hands. "You look gorgeous, Miley!" she said.

Miley smiled, spinning around in the mirror, smoothing her hands over the front of her dress. "You know, Lilly, I was a little nervous about the corset back, but I think it looks really good!" she said excitedly.

"Jake is going to pass out when he sees you! You look awesome." Lilly nodded.

"So this is my dress." Miley grinned. "I'm getting married in three weeks. And this is what I'm wearing." Miley nodded. "I'm getting married." she added in a whisper. "Mrs. Jake Ryan." she said. "Oh, boy." she said, suddenly feeling lightheaded. Lilly jumped up, catching her before she could fall.

"This is no time to feel faint, missy! You're not getting cold feet, are you? Miley, Jake is perfect for you! You guys have been together forever, and that's how it always will be." Lilly said in a firm tone.

"No, no, not cold feet." Miley said, shaking her head, pulling herself upright. "I just...can't believe it." she sighed. "I'm getting married, Lilly!"

Lilly held up her own left hand, showing the engagement ring and wedding band. "Gee. Could you tell me what that's like?" Lilly asked with a smile.

Lilly and Oliver had been married for over two years now, so Miley knew that Lilly probably wasn't going to be the best person to gush to about wedding jitters.

"I know, but you remember how nervous you were? I had to slap you right before you walked down the aisle." Miley pointed out.

"Yeah...And then I had a red mark all the way through the reception!" Lilly said, placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh, stop. If I hadn't done it, you would have been hyperventilating through the entire ceremony." Miley said, looking at herself in the dress again. "I can't believe I'm going to be wearing this when I become Miley Ryan." she said, taking a deep breath.

"Oh, please. It's not like you'll be wearing it that long anyways. I'm sure that Jake will make the reception cut short so that you guys can go to the hotel room where he'll be able to rip it off of you in private." Lilly snickered.

"Haha, very funny." Miley said. "He is _so_ not ripping this dress." she said, turning around to look at her back side for the millionth time.

"So, it's a good fit then?" Wilma said. "Not too tight, or too long or anything?"

"Nope. It's perfect." Miley grinned. "Thank you so much for doing this, Wilma. You're amazing." Miley said, wrapping her arms around the short, chubby woman.

"It's nothing, really. I like to live vicariously through the beautiful girls who come to my shop." Wilma smiled.

Miley smiled back and then they got her out of the dress and back into her jeans and blouse. "We'll pick it up the night before the wedding." Miley said. "Thanks again!" she said as she and Lilly headed out the door.

* * *

So there's the first chapter. Sorry if it's a little lacking. I had to redo it three times because my internet kept crashing.

But make sure to review! It's a fan fiction sin to read without reviewing. Haha.

Pictures of the dress, bracelet, and ring are all on my profile for those of you who would like a visual. Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks everyone for the reviews! Glad you all seemed to like the first chapter.

I think this chapter leans more towards M. So you've been warned.

Disclaimer (which I completely forgot to put in the first chapter): I do not own Hannah Montana/Miley Stewart or any of her friends. I simply take them out to play every now and then. I am making zippo money off of writing this fan fiction. I also don't own Cheerios.

* * *

Miley dropped Lilly off at her and Oliver's house and watched as Oliver greeted her best friend at the door with a kiss. He waved to Miley and she smiled before driving off. She hoped that she and Jake would be as happy as Lilly and Oliver were. But there was absolutely no reason why they wouldn't be. Miley knew that she and Jake were perfect for each other, just like Oliver and Lilly.

_"None of them are you."_

Miley avoided knocking down a mail box as the memory came at her, full force. She pulled over to steady herself. "Oh boy." she said, her eyes wide.

---

"Finally, you're home!" Jake's happy face greeted her when she walked into the apartment. "You know, my favorite part of the day is when I hear your keys in the door." he said as he wrapped his arms around her. "Those two seconds and I know you're home...My baby's home." he smiled.

Miley smiled back as her heart swelled before kissing Jake softly and wrapping her arms around his neck. "You make it hard to stay away." she said.

"Good. That's how it should be." he replied giving her a peck on the forehead. "Everything with your dress go well?" he asked, letting her go so she could put her keys on the hook by the door.

"Mmhm. Fits perfectly. I can't wait for you to see it." Miley grinned, sitting on the counter as she took a handful of Cheerios out of the box that she'd left on the counter this morning before going into work.

"Three weeks." Jake smiled, hopping up to sit next to her. "I can't wait." he said, stealing a Cheerio from her.

Miley leaned in and pressed her lips against his softly, needing no words to say that she couldn't wait either. Jake's hands weaved themselves into her hair as he deepened the kiss with a soft sigh. Miley dropped the handful of Cheerios into the sink before pulling Jake's upper half closer to her, her heart racing. Jake could always get her going, with the slightest of touches.

"Ew! Gross! Totally ruined my appetite!" an annoyingly familiar voice sounded from the archway that lead into the living room.

Miley reluctantly pulled herself away from Jake to glare at her brother, who was standing in the doorway in pajamas and a blue bathrobe.

"It's our apartment. We can make-out on the counter if we want to." Miley said briskly, pouting at the pile of soggy Cheerios in the sink. She'd tossed them for that? She could barely cop a feel, and now she was Cheerio-less. She glared at Jackson and hopped off the counter. "Shouldn't you be moved in with Melanie by now?" she asked.

"I'm working on it. I just have to get Melanie not to think I'm a total loser." Jackson said, finishing off the box of Cheerios before Miley had a chance to get another handful.

"But you are." she pointed out. Jackson glared at her.

"Nooo. Not totally." he muttered. Miley rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. When we get married, we're gonna go at it all the time, on any surface we please, and I don't care if you're here!" Miley said, poking Jackson in the chest.

"Ew, ew, okay, okay. I'll talk to Mel tonight." Jackson said, retreating to what was supposed to be the guest bedroom, but had recently been adopted as his bedroom. Miley crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the door of the room as Jake came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"All the time, huh?" he said quietly so Jackson couldn't hear before kissing Miley's neck. She giggled.

"Yeah. You gotta problem with that?" she said, her arms uncrossing and holding his hands.

"Absolutely not." he whispered before kissing her again and trailing down to the spot where her shoulder became her neck.

"Mmmm..." she moaned quietly, her eyes fluttering shut.

There was the sound of a door opening and Jackson sighed loudly, bowl of Cheerios in hand. Miley's eyes snapped open and she glared at him again. As she walked by him, she took his bowl, ignoring his protest. "My apartment." she snapped as she stalked through her and Jake's bedroom and out onto the balcony.

She sat down on the padded lawn chair and ate Jackson's Cheerios (that she paid for, mind you) as she stared at the ocean, the groups of people picnicking, surfing, or just strolling down the beach. It was very calming.

Jake came out and sat in the chair next to her. "He's going on a date with Mel. Says he's going to talk to her about moving in together somewhere." he said.

"Good." Miley nodded, crossing her ankles.

"I think you stealing his food put him over the top." Jake chuckled. Miley smiled and looked at him.

"Good." she repeated. "Hopefully he's out of here in less than three weeks." she said before putting the bowl on the floor and sitting on Jake's lap, her arms around his neck. "Because no way is he going to be able to make me keep my hands off of you once we're newlyweds." she giggled.

"Once we're newlyweds? Please, you can't keep your hands off me now." Jake said.

"I can too!" Miley shot back. "I could get up and walk away right now if I wanted to! It's you who can't keep his hands off of me!" she said with a defiant nod, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You're right. I'm absolutely helpless to my animal instincts. Like this!" he shouted before ticking Miley's ribs to the point where she was laughing so hard she couldn't breathe.

A half hour later, after a long and much needed make-out session between the groom and bride to be, Jackson interrupted them to say that he was leaving and he hoped to convince Melanie to move in together. As soon as the front door shut, Jake stood up, taking Miley with him. She screamed and held on to him for dear life as he walked into the bedroom. He dropped her on the bed and the proceeded to lay down next to her before claiming her mouth with his.

"What about dinner?" Miley said, pulling away.

"What about it?" Jake asked and Miley's eyes fluttered shut as his lips softly caressed her neck.

"Are we...going to eat?" she asked.

"We'll eat later." Jake said simply, unbuttoning Miley's blouse.

"Good enough for me." Miley sighed as Jake's fingers slid up her stomach to undo her bra which just so happened to unclasp in the front. In fact, most of her bras did because she'd never mastered the skill to hook it in the back. "Oh, Jake." she whimpered as his fingers worked magic against her breasts.

They always took advantage of when Jackson was gone. He left so rarely that it was nearly impossible for them to get any alone time together. And it wasn't like they could just close the door. Miley was a very vocal lover.

After a while, Miley moaned and arched her back against him. She felt the familiar tightening in her stomach as she grew closer to her peak. She bit her lip just before Jake pushed her over the edge.

"Jesse!" she cried out loudly as her toes curled and the intense feeling of euphoria took over her every thought.

"Excuse me?" Jake's angry voice interrupted her thoughts. Miley blinked a few times and looked up to see...Jake. She gasped and her hands flew over her mouth.

Jake sat up and pulled his boxers on. "Jesse as in...Jesse Shea?" he asked, clearly upset.

"I didn't...I didn't say Jesse! I said...Jakey! Yeah! Jakey!" Miley nodded hurriedly.

"You've never been a good liar, Miley." Jake said.

"Okay, so I didn't say Jakey. But it's just...This whole wedding thing has got me all sorts of mixed up and nervous!" Miley said as Jake put his clothes back on. She ran to the dresser and pulled out a pair of sweat pants and one of his shirts.

"Me too! But I'm not yelling someone else's name when I have sex with my _fiance_!" Jake said, walking out of the bedroom.

"Jake, it was an accident! Earlier, I had a huge debate about whether or not to invite Jesse to the wedding. He must have just been subconsciously on my mind." she said, following him. Suddenly he whipped around with a furious expression, glaring down at her.

"You invited him to the wedding?" he asked.

"Of course! He's one of my friends. I let you invite-" Miley stopped and grabbed her nose. "Tracy! Even though she totally black balled me when I did that whole Hannah Montana Revealing Concert thing! When she found out I was just a 'regular' person, she stopped talking to me! And yet, you remained friends with her and she's coming to the wedding!" Miley pointed out.

"Tracy isn't in love with me!" Jake said.

"And Jesse isn't in love with me, I'm his friend!" Miley said, crossing her arms over her chest, though she wasn't entirely true if she believed it herself.

"Really?" Jake asked before grabbing Miley's wrist to hold the bracelet up at eye level. She pulled her hand out of his grasp.

"It was a birthday gift!" she said.

"Yeah, but who gives their 'friend' a tennis bracelet that has their birthstone?" Jake asked. "Face it, Miles. He's been in love with you for years. He was in love with you while you were Hannah, and even when you showed him that you're just Miley! He's still in love with you!"

"Well, even if he is, I don't love him, so there!" Miley nodded defiantly.

"Whatever. I'll be back later." Jake muttered before slamming the door.

"UGH!" Miley screamed before kicking the dish washer, which only resulted in her toe throbbing.

She grabbed her phone and dialed Lilly's number.

"What's up, Miley?" Lilly asked.

"I yelled Jesse's name." Miley said.

"Okay?" Lilly said, clearly not understanding. Miley sighed.

"I yelled Jesse's name...When Jake and I were having sex."

"OH! OH! Oh God." Lilly asked. "Um...Is Jake there? What did he say? Did you cover it up? What happened? OH, shit, Miley!"

"Maybe you should just come over? He just left."

"Okay, I'll be right there. Should I bring Oliver?"

"Weird! No!" Miley said, imagining how awkward it would be have Oliver in the room while she and Lilly discussed what had happened.

"Okay, I'm on my way!"

* * *

Sorry for not updating sooner. I hope you all enjoyed it! It looks like Miley and Lilly have some damage control to do.

Reviews? Yell at me? Cheer for me?


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you for all the reviews!

Just a head's up: I've decided to change the story from T to M. I decided that some of the content is a little mature, and there are some future chapters that are M-rated, no way around it.

And finally, here's chapter three!

* * *

Two hours, multiple helpings of popcorn, and one showing of_ Breakfast at Tiffany's_ later, Miley and Lilly were sitting on Miley's couch and Miley was being pressed for information.

"What exactly happened?" Lilly asked, popping another piece of popcorn into her mouth.

"Ugh! Lilly, you're married! What do you think was happening?" Miley groaned. Lilly rolled her eyes.

"Well, I know what was happening! But I mean...Did you just kind of whisper or moan it or...?" Lilly asked.

"I wish I'd whispered it...I flat out screamed it." Miley sighed, leaning over with her head in her hands. Lilly sighed too.

"Where'd Jake go anyways?" she asked.

Miley shrugged. "I don't know. He just left super angry. God, Lilly, I won't be surprised if he calls the wedding off!"

"Miley, don't be so dramatic. Jake is crazy about you, I doubt he would--" suddenly, Lilly's eyes got wide and her hand flew to cover up her mouth. She jumped off the couch and ran down the hall towards the bathroom. Obviously she hadn't closed the door as Miley could clearly hear the sounds of her best friend throwing up.

Miley got up and headed to the bathroom. She pushed the door open all the way just as Lilly was flushing the toilet. She watched her best friend wash her face and then rinse her mouth out with the mouthwash that sat on the sink.

"Are you okay?" Miley asked.

"I don't know. I've been throwing up for three days." Lilly groaned, sitting on the toilet. "I think I'm just getting migraines though, because I've also gotten a lot of headaches. Ugh, like right now." she groaned, reaching up to cover her eyes. "You have any Excedrine or anything?"

"Sure." Miley said, stepping towards the medicine cabinet. She pulled out the small green bottle and handed it to Lilly, who took two and gave it back to her. Miley watched as Lilly walked towards the kitchen to get some water to take the pills with. She followed and said, "Maybe it's the flu or something? You should probably go to the doctor." Miley said as Lilly took the pills and downed half a glass of water.

"I have an appointment in about a week." Lilly nodded, sitting down at the small kitchen table.

"Let me know when you find out what's going on." Miley said just as the front door opened and in walked Jackson, a huge grin plastered across his face.

"Mel and I are moving in together! We're going apartment hunting tomorrow!" he grinned.

Miley smiled. "That's great, Jackson." she nodded, before sighing, remembering the events of the day.

"Okay...something isn't right. And Lilly, you have something on your cheek." Jackson said. Lilly reached up to wipe her cheek and made a disgusted face when she realized that it was puke.

"Gross!" she said as she jumped up to wash her face. Jackson took her place at the table.

"What's wrong, Miles?" he asked. Miley sighed.

"Just some...problems that Jake and I are having." Miley said, deciding that it was way too weird to go into details with Jackson.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I don't really think you want to ask..." Miley said, shaking her head.

"Trust me, Jackson, you really don't want to know." Lilly said, drinking some more water.

Jackson shrugged. "Alright. Well...let me know if there's anything I can do to help I guess." He stood up and grinned. "I'm going to go call Mel. She loves it when I call her right after I just back from seeing her." he nodded.

Miley shook her head as she watched Jackson head into his room, dialing Melanie's number on his cell phone. "God, Lilly, how can my brother be having a better romantic life than me?" Miley said, resting her head flat against the small table.

"I don't know. That is really-" Lilly stopped when the door opened. Miley looked up to see Jake stepping inside, his expression somber.

"Um...I think I'll go...I'll call you when I figure out what's up at the doctor's." Lilly said quickly.

"Alright." Miley said. "See you..."

"Bye, Jake." Lilly said. He waved, and she disappeared.

"Hi." Miley said quietly.

"Hi." he replied.

There were a few seconds of awkward silence before Miley stood.

"Look, Jake...I'm really, really sorry." she said, approaching him. "I don't even know how it happened."

"It's okay, Miley." Jake said and Miley felt like screaming 'hooray'. "I will admit...that I've thought about other people while we're having sex."

"Super jealous fiance say what?" Miley asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Not a lot! And not anyone I know either." Jake said, touching her arm softly.

"I'm sorry...It's not like I have any room to talk." Miley said, shaking her head.

"It's okay." Jake shrugged. "Here, let's sit down." he said, gesturing to the table. Miley say across from him and sighed, preparing herself for the worst, but not knowing what to expect. "I feel really...threatened by Jesse." Jake said slowly.

Miley honestly hadn't been expecting that. "Really? Why?" she asked.

"Because everyone knows he's crazy about you. And he's good looking, and has that bad boy reputation, on top of being in a famous band, and all I ever did was play a stupid zombie slayer and do a diaper ad." Jake sighed. "So I'm jealous." he shrugged.

Miley smiled and stood up before circling the table to sit on Jake's lap. She took his face in her hands.

"Don't be jealous. I love _you_, Jake. Not Mr. BadBoy Guitar Player." she said. "I chose you." she said, kissing him on the tip of the nose.

"And I'm very glad...but you can't blame me for being jealous. I mean, the man can play guitar like no tomorrow."

Miley thought of Jesse and his band, Gossip. He was the lead guitarist and like Jake said, he was incredible.

"Who cares? Not me. I want you. Forever." she said. Jake smiled and the sight was like heaven to Miley.

"Good...I want you too. Forever." he said before kissing her softly. She sighed a relieved sigh into the kiss.

This was good. Normal. She liked normal. Jake was normal for her and he had been for years. It felt good to be in his arms and have his lips pressed against hers. Not that kissing Jesse was a particularly painful experience. It just wasn't normal.

_Because kissing Jesse is exciting._

_Well, so is kissing Jake._

_But not as exciting as Jesse. Those pouty, bad boy lips and those big brown eyes._

Miley sat up quickly and Jake looked at her with a confused expression.

"I thought we were making up." he said.

"We are. I just..." she didn't really know what to say. 'I just cant stop thinking about kissing Jesse while I'm kissing you.' wasn't exactly an option. "I'm sort of worried about Lilly. She's sick." Miley said. And it wasn't a total lie. She was worried about Lilly, but that wasn't exactly what she was thinking about at the time, but it still worked.

"Really? What's wrong with her?" Jake asked.

"She's been throwing up for the last few days, and she's been having migraines." Miley nodded.

"I'm sorry about today, baby." he whispered suddenly. Miley looked up and kissed him on the cheek softly.

"It was my fault. I'm sorry." Miley said.

"I overreacted." Jake shrugged. Miley didn't say anything. She wasn't sure if Jake overreacted or not, but she wasn't going to press the issue. She was happy that they weren't fighting anymore. But she did have one question.

"Where did you go anyways?" she asked.

Jake shrugged. "I drove around for a little while...went to dinner with Tracy." he added in an undertone.

"_What_?" Miley asked, her voice raising just a little.

"Miley, come on. She's my best friend within a hundred miles besides you. I needed someone to talk to." Jake said. Miley sighed and nodded, understanding. She just really didn't like Tracy.

"Let's not talk about how displeased I am about your choice of dinner date." she said with a firm nod.

"Works for me." Jake said, holding her closely.

Miley sighed a content sigh and closed her eyes, breathing in Jake's familiar scent. She hated fighting with him. But she did love the great make-up sex that usually followed.

She smiled softly when she felt Jake's lips start to place feathery kisses against her neck.

"Jackson's home." she whispered.

"Dammit." Jake muttered with a sigh, causing Miley to break out in goose flesh. "You hungry?" he asked her.

"Hungry for what?" Miley smirked. Jake chuckled.

"For something that won't disrupt Jackson. Or mentally scar him."

Miley smiled and shook her head. "Lilly and I pretty much devoured the popcorn supply." she said. "Wanna watch a movie?" she asked.

"Are you actually going to let me watch it?" Jake asked, an eyebrow raised as he recalled the last time he tried to watch a movie with Miley, in which she wouldn't stop asking questions.

Miley tried to look innocent. "I promise to be quiet for eighty percent of the movie!" Miley nodded.

"Ninety."

"Ugh, fine, ninety. Now come on." she stood, pulling him with her as she headed to the main room.

---

A week and a half later, when Jake was getting his tuxedo fit one last time, Miley was at their apartment alone. Jackson had spent the previous day moving into an apartment with Melanie, and Miley was sure they were christening it as she sat here. The thought made her cringe, so she quickly went back to figuring out how many people had R.S.V.P'ed that they were definitely coming. After going through all the invitees, there was only three people that she was still unsure about:

_**Tracy Blatt  
Heather Truscott  
Jesse Shea**_

Miley stared at Jesse's name and wondered if it had been a mistake to invite him. But perhaps he wasn't going to come. Or maybe, he wasn't even at the same address anymore and some completely random person had gotten her invitation and thrown it away. Miley stared at the name some more and then nearly jumped out of her skin when the phone rang right next to her. She took a deep breath and answered it.

"Hi? Miley? This is Heather, Lilly's mom." Heather Truscott said on the other end of the phone.

"Oh, hi, Miss Truscott." Miley smiled.

"Hi, dear, how are you?" Heather asked.

"I'm pretty good, thanks. How are you?" Miley said.

"I'm excellent. I just wanted to call and tell you that I'd love to come to your wedding. And congratulations by the way!" Heather said happily.

"Thank you very much, Miss Truscott." Miley grinned. "I look forward to seeing you."

"Oh, and Miley...I was wondering if it would be alright for me...to bring a date?" Heather asked somewhat timidly.

"Of course! Go right ahead." Miley nodded. "We'd be happy to have him." she grinned.

"Oh, thanks so much, Miley! I can't wait! Congratulations again, honey."

"Thank you." Miley said.

"I'll see you in a couple weeks."

"Sure thing, Miss Truscott. Have a nice day."

"You too."

The line went dead and Miley shook her head with a smile as she took Lilly's mother's name off of the list and added her to the other one. Now she only had to hear from Tracy and Jesse. Now without the distraction of Miss Truscott, Miley was left to ponder about Jesse some more. Part of her hoped he never even got the invitation, but most of her was excited to see him. But she had assured herself that her excitement was only on a friendship level, and it was completely natural.

Miley pulled her cell phone out and called Lilly.

"Hello?" Oliver's distinctly male voice answered after the third ring.

"Oliver? Why doesn't Lilly have her phone?" Miley asked.

"She's in the doctor's office right now. It's a crazy Indian lady and she wouldn't let Lilly bring in her phone, or me. Something about distractions or something, I couldn't understand her." Oliver said, sounding flustered.

Miley laughed a little. "I see. How long has she been in there?"

"Eh...about twenty minutes." Oliver said. "Oh, wait, here she comes." he added. "What'd she say, Lollypop?"

Miley cringed. Even after all these years, they still called eachother those silly nicknames that personally made her want to throw up. Miley heard Lilly say something, but couldn't quite make it out.

"WHAT?" Oliver shouted and Miley heard a sort of cracking noise, and then the line went dead.

"Wait, wait, what? What?" Miley shouted to no one in particular as she dialed Lilly's number again.

"Miley?" Lilly asked, picking up her phone.

"Lilly! What is it? Why's Oliver freaking out? What's wrong?" Miley asked, her heart racing.

"He's not! He's celebrati-ooph!" Lilly gasped. "Ollypop, put me down!" Lilly giggled hysterically. Miley could hear Oliver singing.

"What's going on?" Miley said.

"Miley, I'm pregnant!" Lilly squealed.

Miley gasped and stood up so quickly that the chair she was in hit the ground with a clatter. "No way! Lilly!" she screamed, grinning from ear to ear.

"Yes way!" Lilly squealed back. "I've been having morning sickness and headaches because of all the hormones!" Lilly said in a shrill voice.

"Oh my God, Lilly! Congratulations!" Miley gasped.

"I've got to go get an ultrasound done to see how far along I am, but Dr. Sen says I'm definitely pregnant!" Lilly said. "Come on, Oliver!"

Miley laughed. "Oh my God, this is incredible, Lilly! I didn't know you guys were trying to get pregnant."

"We weren't! I mean, we weren't not trying, but it wasn't like it was a scheduled thing! My God, Miley, we're having a baby!" Lilly screamed.

"Don't jump up and down!" Miley heard Oliver say loudly. She couldn't help but laugh at Oliver's overprotective tendencies, even just after he'd heard the news.

"Lilly, this is amazing. You have to call me when you get out of the ultrasound!" Miley ordered.

"Okay, I will. I've got to go though, the lady at the front desk is glaring at me. My God, I'm pregnant!" Lilly squealed again.

Miley laughed. "Call me!" she said before Lilly agreed and hung up.

Miley dialed Jake's number, eager to tell him, but she ended up getting his voice mail. "Jake, call me! I have awesome news!" Miley squealed.

She hung up and couldn't wipe the smile off her face. Her best friends were having a baby! She wondered who it would look like more. Would it have Lilly's wavy blonde locks, or Oliver's straight dark hair? Miley pictured her future children. She wanted four, and she didn't care what gender. Right now she pictured three little boys, and one little pink bundle of joy. The little girl had dark brown curls sprouting from her head and blue eyes just like Miley's, while the boys were all spitting image of their father; dark brown hair and big brown eyes that could make you melt. The image brought a warm smile to Miley's face...until she realized that the kids she was picturing weren't Jake's.

Miley shook herself out of her fantasy when her cell phone rang, showing a number that she hadn't seen in a very long time. She stared at it while contemplating answering it or just ignoring it. Finally, she gave in and flipped her phone open.

"Um...hello?" she asked quietly.

"Miley?" Jesse Shea's voice slipped into Miley's ears and she had to sit down with how weak in the knees it made her. Jake's voice never did that to her anymore.

"Yeah. It's Miley. Jesse?" she asked, though she knew perfectly.

"Yeah...Hi." Jesse said.

Miley couldn't help but laugh. "Hi."

"Yeah so um...Congratulations...on that whole marriage deal." Jesse said. It sounded less than enthusiastic.

"Thank you." Miley said.

"So...when did that happen? I mean, when did he propose?" Jesse asked, and Miley wondered if he felt as awkward as she did.

"At my birthday." she whispered.

Jesse was silent for a moment.

"Really."

"Mmhm." Miley choked out. She didn't understand why this was making her so emotional and tying her tongue so easily.

"Well...Congratulations, like I said." he said softly and Miley pictured him covering his eyes with his hand like he always did when he was hurt or upset.

"Thank you, Jesse. That really means a lot." Miley nodded. "So...are you coming?" she asked nervously.

"Do you want me to?" he replied.

"Of course!" Miley said instantly. "Why else would I have invited you?"

"Good point." Jesse chuckled, but it sounded fake and half-assed. "I think I can make it...if you really want me there."

"I do, Jesse."

Jesse chuckled. "Actually, I think your line is 'I do, _Jake_'." he joked. Miley smiled.

"You'd be correct." she said, running her fingers through her hair. "I do want you to come though, Jesse. It will really mean a lot." Miley assured him.

"Then I'll be there." he said.

They sat in silence for a moment, listening to each other breathe. It wasn't awkward or uncomfortable. It was actually kind of nice.

"So I'll be flying into Malibu tomorrow...Gossip has a gig tomorrow night."

"Oh really? Where?" Miley asked.

"Um...ha, you know where you used to have your Hannah Montana rehearsals? Where we hung out and what-not?"

"Yeah."

"Well, they've sort of converted it into this...concert hall. It's not huge, but it's the perfect size for us." Jesse said.

Gossip was an excellent band, but they hadn't exactly gone mainstream yet. They'd had a few offers, but the manager always wanted to change their sound, so it never worked out. That was one of the things Miley loved about the boys of Gossip. They wouldn't change for anything.

"You should come. And...bring Jake if you want." Jesse added, and it sounded reluctant.

"Really? You're sure?" Miley asked.

"Yeah...in fact, bring everyone. Lilly, Oliver, Jake, even Jackson if you want." Jake chuckled. "It'll be nice to see everyone." he nodded. "But um...who all knows?" he asked, sounding somewhat uncomfortable.

"Knows what?" Miley asked.

"Miley..." Jesse said, emphasizing her name.

"Oh!" Miley said, her cheeks flushing. "You mean about...what happened at...Yeah, um, just Lilly. And she may have told Oliver." Miley said, also feeling uncomfortable.

"Okay...Well, I guess that's good." Jesse said slowly. "Miley, I really think we should talk about it." he added.

"It was just a kiss, Jesse. It didn't mean anything." Miley said stoically.

"Miley, it-"

"I'm getting married in less than two weeks." she stated. Jesse was quiet for a second.

"You're right...I know, I'm sorry. I'll see you tomorrow. It starts at eight." Jesse said.

He hung up before Miley could say anything else. Miley sighed and rested her face in her hands. She couldn't keep thinking about Jesse the way she had been recently. She'd been practically obsessed with wondering whether or not he was going to come to the wedding, and whether or not he'd want to talk about kissing her. Clearly, he did. Miley didn't want to discuss it though. It was over and done with, in the past. There was nothing she could do about it now. And talking about kissing him certainly wasn't going to make the feelings go away.

A little while later, Miley decided she needed a hot bath, so she filled the bath tub with hot water and her favorite vanilla scented bubble bath. She pulled her hair into a sloppy bun on top of her head and smiled as she slid in, her entire body relaxing. She closed her eyes and wondered how she was going to tell Jake about her phone call with Jesse. She didn't imagine that he'd be all too pleased to hear that she'd talked with him for so long. Or that he'd be pleased she was planning on going to see his band play tomorrow night.

* * *

So there it is!

More to come, obviously. Reviews are lovely, as always! I'd like to take a poll actually...Who would you rather she end up with? Jake? Jesse?

Let me know!


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry for the wait, ladies and gentlemen.

Author's Note: I was recently informed that there is already a band called _The_ Gossip. I want you to know that it was completely accidental, and I have therefore renamed Jesse's band Loose Lips. I even looked it up, and there is no such band.

Disclaimer: Don't own anything, except for the plot. And the band name Loose Lips. I totally call that.

* * *

Jake came home a little while later, and Miley laughed at his reaction upon seeing her in the bath tub. After some convincing, he'd gotten her to let him join. Being in his arms felt nice, and she relaxed against him. He was thrilled about Lilly's news, and apologized to Miley for not picking answering her call. He'd left his phone in the car while he was getting his tuxedo fitted.

After a few minutes of simply enjoying each others' company, Miley decided to speak.

"So...the only person we're waiting on to say if they're coming is Tracy." Miley stated, figuring she'd ease into the conversation about Jesse.

"Oh yeah? So everyone else is coming?" Jake asked as he gently rubbed Miley's shoulders.

"Mmhm." Miley nodded.

"Everyone?"

"Yes." Miley chuckled slightly. "You got someone in mind or something?" she asked, although she already knew the answer.

"No...not really." Jake lied.

"You were never a good liar, Jake." Miley said quietly, turning her head to look at him.

Jake sighed.

"Jesse's coming." It wasn't a question.

"Yes." Miley answered anyways. "He called earlier today, right after Lilly's mom." she said. Again, Jake sighed. "Come on, Jake. He's one of my best friends." she whispered.

"I know...which is why I'm not going to say anything." Jake said with a nod.

Miley kissed his cheek softly. "He invited us to go see his band tomorrow night. At the same place where we used to practice; I guess it's a concert venue now." Miley nodded. "You want to come?" she asked.

Jake thought about it, but shook his head. "No. You haven't seen him in a while. He'll _hug_ you." he muttered.

"Jake, really? You're going to get jealous because of a friendly 'It's been forever' hug?" Miley asked, not even wanting to know how he'd react if he knew about that kiss all those months ago.

"He's in love with you, Miley. It's obvious. Why should I have to be around that?" Jake asked, dropping his hands into the water.

Miley sat up and turned her upper body towards Jake. "Because I love you. How many times do I have to repeat that?" she asked, a tiny bit miffed.

"I know you love me." Jake said. "I just...I've heard things about Jesse. Apparently, he's still a big player, and his specialty is married women." Jake said, looking down.

"And you think I'd let him seduce me away from you or something?" Miley asked.

"Well, it almost happened."

Miley saw the hurt look on Jake's face and it broke her heart. She took his face into her hands. "Jake, that was years ago. I chose you, remember? You are the one I chose, and you will always be the one that I choose. I promise. I love you and only you, okay?" she leaned forward and kissed his lips softly.

"I think you should come with me tomorrow, Jake. I'm inviting Lilly and Oliver too." she added. "Please?"

She felt like with Jake there, she'd be less likely to say, do, or think something that could potentially get her into trouble. After a minute, Jake shook his head.

"I think...I mean if it's okay with you...I'll give Tracy a call, see if she wants to go to dinner. Figure out if she's coming to the wedding."

Miley's jaw tightened and Jake saw the expression.

"It's dinner. You're going to his concert." Jake stated. Miley sighed and nodded, trying to see it from his perspective.

"Alright, that's fair." she agreed.

Jake kissed her again and it wasn't long before any thoughts of Jesse and Tracy were soon forgotten. Well, thoughts of Tracy at least.

---

"Sorry, Miles, we're going to Oliver's for dinner. To tell them the news." Lilly said the next day over the phone.

"Oh come on, Lilly! If you guys don't go, and Jake doesn't go, then I'll be alone. Remember what happened the last time I was alone with Jesse?" Miley groaned.

"Miley Stewart. If you can't trust yourself to be alone with this man, then why are you marrying someone else?" Lilly asked in a stern voice.

"No, it's not that I don't trust myself! I just...ugh, I don't know." Miley said.

"Miley?" Jakes voice said from outside the bathroom.

"Yeah?" Miley asked, opening the door.

"I'm leaving. What time are you planning on being home?" he asked.

"Uh, I have no clue actually." Miley winced.

Jake sighed but didn't comment. "Okay. I'll probably be here before you then. You want me to wait up?"

"Sure." Miley smiled. Jake pecked her on the lips.

"Love you." he said as he headed towards the door.

"Love you most!" she replied.

"Lies. All lies." Jake laughed, shutting the door behind him before Miley could respond.

"It's not that I don't trust myself around him, Lilly, I just haven't seen him in so long. I'm afraid things will be awkward. I need your quirky charm to ease the tension!" Miley pleaded.

"Sorry, but we can't." Lilly said. "Or else we would, and you know it. And you definitely know I would." she added in a hushed tone.

Miley chuckled. Since Lilly and Oliver's marriage, Oliver's parents had been less than likeable when it came to Lilly. When they were kids, all was hunky-dory but as soon as Lilly and Oliver got serious, the shit hit the fan. It was never a fun time when the Oakens and Lilly were in the same room, and that was no secret.

"I know you would. So thanks anyways." Miley sighed as she rifled through her closet for something to wear.

"Call me when you get home okay? We're almost there. Pray for me." Lilly said, and Miley could tell she was only half-joking.

"I will. And please, God, let Mrs. Oaken not be slaughtered by my best friend...because we all know the old bat wouldn't stand a chance." she tacked on there at the end for a laugh. She got what she was going for.

"Thanks, Miley. Talk to you later." Lilly laughed. Miley clicked her phone shut and set it on the dresser, staring into her closet.

She honestly had no idea what to wear. She wanted to look nice, but not too nice. And she wanted to look casual, but not sweats and a hoodie casual. She groaned, raking her fingers through her hair as she took off the fourth pair of jeans she'd tried on. She had almost an hour, but at the rate this was going, that might be how long she needed.

As for her hair, she'd perfected it's natural waviness with some mousse, and she was letting it hang down her back. Her make up was also simple, just some eyeliner with shimmery gray shadow to make her eyes pop. Usually, her hair was the dilemma, but tonight, she was completely unsure of what to wear.

Suddenly, a sparkly black number caught her eye. She pushed a few shirts and a pair of jeans away from it and held it up. She didn't even remember buying it honestly, but that didn't mean anything. She had clothes that she'd splurged on just because of an argument with Jake, and then never saw again. She held it against herself and looked in the mirror.

It was short, black and shimmery. After putting it on, she discovered that it barely came to her finger tips. But she loved it.

"It's too dressy." she muttered to her reflection, but she couldn't deny that she loved the way she looked in it. "Oh, who cares?" she grinned as she prepared the rest of her outfit.

When she was done, she was in the dress, a pair of black lame leggings, and black ballet flats that Lilly had given her for her birthday. She pulled on some silver bangles and swiped a bit of gloss onto her lips. She wasn't afraid to admit it: She looked hot.

The alarm on her cell phone going off alerted her that it was time to leave. She grabbed her black purse and threw the essentials in it: her phone, her lip gloss, and her tiny can of pepper spray. It was surprising how many radical Hannah Montana fans there still were, even though she'd technically stopped being Hannah years ago.

Twenty minutes later, Miley was pulling up in front of the small venue. She took a deep breath as memories came crashing down on her.

_"Boy, do I wanna kiss you!" she'd said loudly._

_"You wanna what?" Jake's angry voice had said._

_'Hannah' had whirled around to see him standing there, looking less than pleased._

Miley shook her head as she pulled herself out of the memories and climbed out of her car, shutting the door and locking it with the button on her keys. She saw signs for the concert, and a line of people outside. She grinned when she saw Loose Lips drummer, Tyler, also waiting by the door. He saw her and dashed back inside. Miley was confused but understood when Tyler came back out, Jesse right behind him. There was a loud gush of excitement from the line as people begged for pictures and autographs, but Jesse pushed past the people.

"Miley!" he shouted, the eagerness and excitement clear in his voice.

"Jesse!" Miley shouted back as they practically ran at each other. Miley didn't realize how excited she was to see him until this exact moment, when he scooped her into a hug and spun her around twice, holding her tightly around the waist. Her arms naturally wrapped around him and she closed her eyes, enjoying every second of it. Finally, he put her down, but his hands stayed on her waist, and hers on his shoulders.

"It's good to see you." he smiled down at her.

She ruffled his hair, which was slightly longer than it had been the last time she'd seen him.

"I second that motion." she smiled.

"Hey,hey, don't mess with the do!" he laughed, backing up and fixing what she'd just messed up.

Miley laughed as they headed back towards the building and this time, Jesse stopped to take pictures with a few fans, and he even signed a girl's collar bone. He escorted Miley inside and lead her backstage, where the rest of Loose Lips was sitting, tuning their instruments. Miley counted and frowned when she saw that their lead singer, Alex, was missing.

"Where's Alex?" she asked.

"In Vegas." Tony, the bassist answered. Miley's brow furrowed. "His mom's getting married." he finished.

"Oh...so whose singing?" she asked.

"Who else?" Tyler said, pointing to Jesse.

Miley felt stupid for asking. She remembered that Jesse could sing. And he also wasn't half bad at playing the keyboard. Or writing lyrics. Without him, she'd never have written He Could Be The One.

"Ah, I guess that makes sense." Miley laughed, looking over at Jesse.

"Yeah and it works out even better because he's got this song that he wants to play, specifically for tonight." Tony said as he tuned the bass.

"Dude!" Collin, the keyboardist said, tossing his had at Tony.

"What?" Tony said, tossing it back.

"Shut up!" Both Tony and Jesse said. Miley laughed and then looked towards the door when two girls came in. She recognized Ruby, Collin's girlfriend, but she'd never met the other one. Ruby saw Miley and smiled, walking over to her, her red curls councing around wildly.

"Miley! It's been forever! Jesse tells me you're tieing the knot with a wash- an actor." Ruby stumbled over her words for a second.

"Yeah." Miley nodded. "Jake Ryan. In a couple weeks actually."

"Wow. Congratulations!" Ruby grinned. "This is Tanya, Tony's girlfriend." she nodded, pushing the pretty blond forward.

"Hi." Tanya said shyly.

"Hey. Miley." Miley smiled.

"Nice to meet you." Tanya said. After a few seconds, she went over and sat next to Tony, who pulled his attention away from the bass and kissed her on the cheek. They started whispering to each other but Miley didn't think it was in a private, gossiping way. Just quieter than normal. She looked away, back to where Ruby had been standing, but saw that she was sitting on Collin's lap, running her fingers through his messy brown hair while she told him that he was going to be great.

Miley felt out of place, so she walked over and sat on a cooler next to Jesse where he was standing, tuning his guitar.

"Nervous?" Miley asked.

"A little." Jesse admitted. "But the nerves go away as soon as the crowd screams when we walk out on stage. It's like a high or something." Jesse said before looking up at her and smiling. "But you'd know all about that, right Miss Montana?" he asked.

Miley smiled and nodded.

"You ever miss it?" he asked her, tilting his head.

"Sometimes. I miss the way it made me feel. The thrill of it, I mean. The high." she said with a smile. "It was my main source of excitement I guess." she shrugged, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Being a music teacher doesn't really have the same affect." she laughed.

"Yeah, I never thought it would." Jesse nodded. He studied her for a moment. "You look phenomenal tonight by the way." he said quietly so the others wouldn't hear."

Miley looked at him, her blue eyes wide. That was different. Jake often told her she looked nice, or good, but never did he ever say she looked phenomenal. "Thanks." she said, before looking down.

"I'm not breaking any rules by saying that, am I?" he asked. Miley looked up to see that he was serious. "I mean...that's not crossing any lines that an engaged woman has, right?" he asked.

Miley couldn't help but smile. "No, you're fine." she shook her head. "But I've got to tell you, your hug was just a little gropey." she joked.

"Oh please, you practically threw yourself at me. I thought I was going to be violated." he laughed.

"No way, that was all you. Way too touchy. Jake would have ripped your arms off for that one." she nodded, pretending to be serious.

"Not the face, not the face." Jesse said under his breath with a smirk.

"He's not like that anymore." Miley said. "Not really."

Jake just laughed and shook his head before he began playing his guitar softly. Miley recognized the chords instantly.

"Smooth talking, so rockin'," Miley sang quietly before laughing. "You still know the chords?" she asked.

"You still know the words." he pointed out.

"True." she agreed.

"What say you to singing it tonight? Before the end. You said you miss the high." he shrugged. Miley looked up.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

"Definitely." he nodded.

"You should do it, Miley. The boys all know how to play it. For some reason." Ruby laughed.

"Because Jesse's obses- Never mind." Collin said, looking away from Jesse's glare.

"Are you guys sure? It's your concert. I doubt most of these people even like Hannah Montana. And I haven't sung in forever." Miley said, shaking her head.

"Who cares? You're doing it. I don't care what you have to say. You're doing it." Jesse nodded just as a man in a black t-shirt came in.

"We're setting up now, guys." he said.

"That's our cue." Collin said, standing and putting Ruby to her feet. Ruby kissed him on the cheek and wished him good luck.

Miley was surprised to see Tanya and Tony practically eating each other's faces. And her jaw dropped when they parted and Tanya clearly whispered, "There's more where that came from if you go out and kick ass." Tony grinned and slowly, the guys filed out.

"It's the quiet ones you've got to watch out for." Ruby whispered to Miley's shocked expression.

"Oh...right." Miley nodded, and then the girls lead her up a flight of stairs and onto a balcony of sorts.

From there, Miley could see the crowd, bigger than she thought it was going to be, and the stage. She watched Jesse as he helped the crew set everything up, and then laughed at the jokes he made into each microphone, making sure they all worked.

After ten minutes of set up, Loose Lips was finally ready to play.

"Hello out there!" Jesse shouted into the mic. His response was loud screaming, nothing actually coherent. "So, it's unfortunate that we have to tell you this, but our dear singer Alex, is not with us tonight." Loud booing. "Yes, we're unhappy too." Jesse nodded. "He is in Vegas."

"His mom's marrying some one." Collin said into his microphone.

"What?" Jesse said, his brow furrowed as he glanced back at Collin.

"His mom is marrying some one?" Collin repeated, unsure of what Jesse didn't understand.

"Oh, I thought you said he's marrying his mom." Jesse laughed.

"Yeah, they do that in Vegas." Tyler piped in.

The crowd laughed and Miley did too. She loved how casual the boys all seemed, and the audience obviously did too.

"Alright, enough of this crap, who came here to listen to us make some noise?" Jesse yelled.

More screaming.

"Here we go then!" he shouted just before Tyler slammed down on the drums.

The first three songs went beautifully. Miley, Ruby, and Tanya jumped and danced to the music and by the end of the third song, they all needed a breather. But Miley was confused when everyone left the stage except for Jesse.

"Now this...This is a new song, written in the last few months." he said as another man in a black shirt brought him and electro-acoustic guitar. "It's about a girl." he said.

The audience 'Awwwed' loudy and Jesse nodded. "Cliche, yes. But this isn't one of those songs about how much I love waking up next to her, or how much I love being able to call her mine. Because she isn't mine." Another 'aw' of sympothy.

Miley was frozen. No way he'd write a song about her and sing it while she was right there.

"The answer is yes, it's about you." Ruby said in Miley's ear. "He wrote it after your birthday party, when you never called him or anything.

"So here it is." Jesse said. "I hope you like it." he nodded before he started strumming.

_She's the type of girl, yeah,  
You know the sort.  
That just by existing,  
Could break your little heart_

Miley stared down at Jesse as his voice, low and smooth, slid out of the speakers, surrounding everything.

_And she's the type of girl,  
The world stops when she smiles,  
She makes you see stars,  
And she drives you wild_

_She's gorgeous and crazy.  
And she's got her own songs.  
Since I let her go, I only think:  
Where did I go wrong?_

_Yeah, she's the type of girl  
You don't get off your mind,  
You can drink, you can sleep,  
But she's there all the time_

Miley's hand was over her mouth and she was leaning heavily against the railing. She didn't know what to do, say, or think. She felt Ruby's hand on her shoulder and she looked over.

"He's in love with you, Miley. He has been for ages. You should see him when he talks about you. It's like a little kid on Christmas. I know that there's nothing more in the world he'd like to tell you other than not to marry Jake." Ruby whispered.

Miley looked back down at Jesse as her eyes filled with tears. Why she was crying, she didn't know.

_And now she's with him,  
Just as happy as can be,  
While you watch and you think:  
That should be me_

_Yeah, she's the type of girl  
You don't get off your mind,  
You can drink, you can sleep  
But she's there all the time.  
And she should be mine._

_She's the type of girl  
That should be mine._

Jesse played for a few more seconds and then strummed one last time, ending the song beautifully. The crowd erupted into screams and hollers. Clearly, they'd all loved it. Miley saw Jesse turn to look up, and she leaned back against the wall, out of his field of vision. She wanted to cry. She also wanted to scream at him for writing such a beautiful song about her and not someone else, someone that wasn't engaged, someone that could love him the way he deserved.

"He's a great person. And he really, truly lo-" Ruby began.

"And I love Jake." Miley choked. "_Jake._" she repeated, looking at Ruby. "Not Jesse. You're right, he is a great person, but I picked Jake when we were kids, and I'm picking him now. I am marrying Jake. Tell Jesse I'm sorry, but something came up." Miley said before pushing past the redhead and practically sprinting down the stairs. She followed the same path they'd come, out the back door and then finally outside.

She was crying, though she wasn't really sure why. She guessed that knowing how Jesse felt about her, and seeing how much it hurt him, hurt her too. She dropped her clutch, sending her pepper spray and phone skidding across the pavement. She bent to her knees to get them and she heard the door open, but she didn't look to see who it was.

"Miley!" Jesse's voice called running out. He bent down and grabbed her phone, handing it to her.

"No, no. I need to leave." she stood, shoving it back in her bag. She didn't know where her pepper spray was, but she didn't care. She could make it home without it.

"Miley, no, stop! I didn't mean to upset you." Jesse said, grabbing her arm to prevent her from leaving.

"Jesse! I need to leave! _Jake_ is waiting for me." Miley said, looking him in the eye and emphasizing her fiance's name.

"Miley, don't go." Jesse said in barely a whisper.

"I have to. I'm getting married." Miley responded, more tears spilling out.

Jesse's hand was on her face, brushing the tears away. "Don't." Jesse said simply. "Don't marry him."

Miley looked at him as if he'd sprouted a third eye ball.

"What? Jesse, when I was talking about a performance high, I didn't actually mean get high!" Miley said before pulling herself away from his grip and heading towards her car.

"No, Miley, stop! We need to talk!" Jesse said, running in front of her.

"There is nothing to talk about. I'm getting married? Why can't you people understand that?" Miley said, walking around him. But he was suddenly leaning against the driver door and refusing to budge.

"Because you're marrying the wrong person!" Jesse said slowly and loudly.

"No, I'm not! I love Jake, and Jake loves me!" Miley said even louder.

"And I love you!"

"NO!" Miley screamed, covering her ears and shaking her head. "No, no, no. You can't say that, Jesse. You just...you just can't, okay? I...You...No! I chose Jake! I chose Jake and that's it!" she said, looking back up at him. "And now I need to go home." she said quietly.

Jesse stared at her for a minute in disbelief. "You...You're going to go back to him?" he whispered.

"He's my fiance." Miley said, wiping her eyes. "I have to."

"Do you want to?" he whispered, taking a step closer to her, causing her to back into the green van that was next to the bug. She felt his body heat.

"Yes." she said weakly.

"Miley...Do you want to go back to him right now? Is that the only thing that would make you happy right at this moment?" Jesse whispered, closing in on her, his breath on her cheek.

Miley swallowed as she looked into Jesse's deep brown eyes. Her heart was racing, her stomach was doing flips, and her breath caught in her throat as her tongue moistened her lips. She so badly wanted to be able to say 'yes'. But she'd never been a good liar.

"No." she whispered. She was vaguely aware of Jesse's hands as they came up to rest on the van behind her head, and she was vaguely aware of him leaning closer.

"Miley...what do you want right now?" he said into her ear, his breath making her shiver.

This was wrong. This was so unbelievably, incredibly wrong. Jesse pulled back to look into her eyes, brown meeting blue. She shook her head.

"Can I tell you what I want?" he asked. Miley knew she shouldn't have, but she nodded. But when Jesse's lips opened, words didn't come out. Instead, his mouth was on top of hers and he was kissing her again. But not like at her party. This was different. More open, more passionate, more needy and wanting. And though Miley knew she shouldn't, she kissed him back.

Her fingers tangled in his hair and her clutch dropped to the ground and she kissed him back, for all she was worth. He pressed her against the van and a strangled sigh escaped her lips at the feel of his entire body pressed against hers. This was wrong, so wrong. But everything; Jesse's lips on her lips and his body against her body, everything felt so good. Jesse was making every inch of her body ache with desire, and that was something she hadn't felt in a long, long time.

Before she knew it, Jesse had opened the van behind them and they fell in, hitting the carpeted floor. It hurt a little, but not enough to make her stop kissing him, and not enough to make him stop grinding against her.

She hastily unbuttoned his yellow flannel, shoving it off of his shoulders. He shoved her dress up abover her hips and she somehow wriggled out of it, casting it aside. Jesse's hands were all over her bare torso, sliding up her skin and giving her goose bumps. He was wearing a white v-neck and that wasn't okay with Miley. She pushed it up, scraping her nails along his chest as she did so, and he groaned, pulling it off. He leaned down and started kissing her neck, nipping at the sensitive flesh. Miley whimpered.

"Oh, Jesse," she sighed, her nails scraping his back.

"Dude, Jess, you in- OH!"

Miley screamed and pushed Jesse off of her, grabbing her dress and covering herself with it as Collin and Ruby stood on the pavement by the van, their jaws dropped. Miley wanted to be eaten by the floor of the van.

"What are you doing?!" Ruby screamed, the one to get her voice back first.

"We were just-" Jesse stuttered. "We just- she was- I wanted- We-"

"She is engaged, Jesse! Engaged! As in to be married! To another man!" Ruby shrieked.

"I know that!" Jesse said as he frantically pulled his clothes on.

"Clearly you don't because you shouldn't be doing...that with engaged women!" Ruby sputtered angrily. Miley pulled her dress on and then practically jumped out of the van, which she hadn't realized until just then that it was the Loose Lips tour van.

"I have to go." she muttered, bending down to grab her purse.

"Miley, wait! Don't go!" Jesse said, jumping out behind her.

"No, I'm leaving! I'll see you...in a couple weeks." she said, shaking her head as she climbed in her car.

She heard Jesse yelling, but she turned the car on and peeled out, wincing at the noise the tire made.

* * *

I figured since I made you guys wait forever, I'd give you some drama.

Te gusta? No te gusta? Tell me what you think! Like always, I'm happy to hear it.

I wrote the lyrics myself, please don't judge me too harshly! I'm not a poet by any means, I just figured I'd take a wack at it because I didn't want to steal anyone else's lyrics.


	5. Chapter 5

So yeah, this is definitely M. Sexual scenes ahead. You've been warned.

* * *

A soft sigh escaped Miley's lips as Jesse's slid up her neck, causing a line of hot fire in their wake. Her eyes fluttered shut and she groaned when his arousal rubbed against her own. God, she wanted him. It was so wrong. Jake was somewhere, completely unsuspecting of what was going on with his fiance, and the man that he knew was In love with her. Miley had denied it for so long, but it was all making sense now. Jesse was in love with her. He'd said so himself, and so had Ruby. Miley had been in denial she supposed. How were you supposed to face the fact that one of your best friends was in love with you? It complicated things ten fold.

"Oh, Jesse," Miley gasped as his fingers deftly unbuttoned her dark skinny jeans and pushed them down her legs.

"I want you so bad, Miley." Jesse whispered, his breath hot in her ear.

"Mmm, I want you too." Miley whimpered.

Jesse wasn't touching her anymore, and Miley opened her eyes to watch as he pulled his white v-neck over his head. Upon seeing his shirtless form, another shot of arousal was sent straight to her core. He was fucking beautiful. Miley vaguely remembered something about his manager paying for everyone in the band to have a gym membership so they all stayed in shape. She made a mental note to write a 'thank you' letter to B.J.

Jesse's hands pushed at her shirt and Miley threw the useless garment away from her, nearly knocking the lamp off the stand next to the hotel bed.

Jesse was against her again and she felt _him_ against her thigh. She shuddered, pulling his lips down to hers and kissing him full force, not holding anything back. He groaned, rubbing himself against her, even though her stupid blue panties were in the way.

"Off!" Miley gasped, yanking at them uselessly. Jesse smirked and pulled them down her legs before settling in between them.

"I love you, Miley." Jesse whispered, staring into her blue eyes.

"I love you too." She replied, reaching up to brush her hand through his brown curls.

And it knocked the wind out of her when she realized that she meant it. She did love Jesse. And more than the way she loved Oliver and Lilly. She loved him in the way that she loved Jake. She didn't know how long she had, but she did. And it scared the shit out of her.

Before she could concern herself with how long, or how much, or any of that, Jesse slid inside of her and she gasped loudly, her back arching. She wrapped her legs around him as he thrusted into her over and over again.

"Fuck, Jesse, oh my God." She groaned loudly, her nails scraping his shoulders.

He suddenly flipped them over so she was on top, and he held her hips in place as he thrusted up into her. Miley's head tipped back and she cried out.

Jesse groaned. "Miley," he grunted.

Miley felt the tightening in her stomach and she whimpered helplessly, her teeth worrying her bottom lip as she grew closer and closer to the edge.

"Jesse! Jesse, I'm- I'm-"

But before she could say anything else, Jesse's lips were around her right nipple, and his hand was in between them, rubbing her clit vigorously.

An incoherent scream escaped her lips as she tumbled over the edge, and somewhere in the distance she felt Jesse shudder and follow behind, emptying himself into her.

Miley collapsed onto him and took a deep, shuddering breath as she tried to come back to earth. She felt his arms wrap around her and his lips kiss her neck softly, giving her good chills.

"That was…" Jesse breathed.

"Amazing." Miley finished, her voice barely there.

"You're beautiful when you come." He whispered into her ear, causing her to groan softly.

"Thank you." She whispered, using all her strength to sit up on her elbows and look down at him. He smiled softly up at her and brought one of his hands up to cup her cheek softly.

"But you're always beautiful." He whispered. She smiled slightly and leaned into his soft, warm hand, her eyes closing. "You can wake up now." He whispered.

Her eyes opened. "What?" she asked.

"Wake up."

"What are you talking about?"

"Miss!" _Tap, tap, tap._ "Wake up!"

Miley jumped and looked out her car door window, upon seeing a cop, tapping his flash light against it. She turned the car on and rolled the window down.

"Are you okay, ma'am?" the officer asked.

Miley's heart was pounding from the graphic nature of her dream.

"Um…um, yeah." She nodded. "Um…yeah, I'm fine." She said. "Sorry, I just pulled over for a little while and apparently fell asleep." She said, running her fingers through her hair.

The cop nodded. "Have you been drinking tonight?" he asked.

"No!" Miley said, shaking her head. "I'm totally sober." She said. He shined the flash light in her eyes and she blinked rapidly against the invasion of light.

"Well, have a good night then." He nodded. "But if this happens again, you'll get a ticket. Understood?" he asked.

"Yes, sir, Officer Krupke." She said, her eyes flashing to his name.

He waved before heading back to his cruiser and pulling away. Miley heard and incessant buzzing noise and gasped when she realized it was her phone. She pulled it out of her clutch and flipped it open, holding it to her ear.

"Hello?" she asked.

"MILEY!" Jake's relieved voice shouted. "Where the hell are you?"

Miley looked at the clock and saw that it was almost one AM. She sighed.

"Jake, I'm sorry. I pulled over and fell asleep." She said as she pulled off the side of the road.

"I called you twenty times! Seriously, I think this is call number twenty-one!" he said loudly.

"I know! I'm sorry, it was an accident. I'm on my way home now. I should be there soon."

"Miley, do you have any idea worried I've been? My God, I thought something happened to you! Or-or you were somewhere with Jesse or something!" Jake said.

Miley felt like she was going to throw up when she remembered what had actually happened between her and Jesse, and then thought about the dream she'd just been woken up from.

"N-no. I'm fine." She stuttered.

Jake was quiet for a minute. "Wait…why did you pull over?" he asked.

"I was…tired." Miley said. "So I was going to just, rest my eyes. And I passed out apparently." She said.

"Did something happen, Miley? You don't sound like yourself." Jake said in a softer tone.

"No. Everything's fine." Miley lied, biting her bottom lip.

She heard a nasally noise in the back ground and her jaw dropped.

"Traci is still there?" she asked.

"Yeah. She saw how freaked I was about you being missing and figured she'd stick around until you turned up." Jake said.

"Jake, I wasn't missing! You just didn't know where I was."

"Isn't that the general definition of a missing person?" Jake asked quietly.

Miley didn't say anything.

"How close are you to home?" Jake asked.

"Twenty minutes, if that." Miley said.

"Okay. I'll see you then, alright?" Jake said.

"Yeah." She said with a sigh.

"I love you."

Jesse's face popped into her mind as she responded with "I love you too."

She hung up and drove quickly, ignoring the speed limit even more than usual. It was one in the morning, it wasn't like there were many cars on the road anyways.

She couldn't believe what had happened that night. And more than that, she couldn't believe what would have happened if Ruby and Collin hadn't come looking for Jesse.

_No. It wouldn't have happened. I would have stopped it. _Miley told herself defiantly, but even she didn't know if she believed it. And she didn't know if she'd ever forgot the way Jesse's body felt pressed against hers, and clearly, her dreams weren't on her side. She did her best to focus on the road and ignore everything else that was bouncing around in her brain, but she failed miserably, remembering the hasty way she'd pushed Jesse's shirt off of him in the van.

She got home just over twenty minutes later, and as she walked up the stairs to her and Jake's apartment, she tried to gain some composure so he wouldn't know anything was wrong. Especially if Traci was there. The thought made Miley groan aloud as she stood in front of the door. With a final deep breath, she slid her key into the lock and then pushed the door open.

Jake and Traci were standing in the kitchen and as soon as she walked through the door, Jake practically jumped on her, pulling her into his familiar embrace. Miley's eyes fluttered shut and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close. He had no idea how badly she needed that hug.

"My God, I was so worried about you!" Jake said in a breathless voice. "I thought something horrible had happened!"

"No, I'm fine." Miley sighed, burying her face in the crook of Jake's neck.

"Well, since Miley's home, I think I'll be leaving now." Traci said, her voice still as nasally and irritating as ever.

Miley pulled back from Jake slightly to look at Traci. "Thank you for keeping him company." she said, though what she really wanted to say was 'Fuck off.'

"No problem." Traci said. "Congrats on the engagement by the way! I'll be at the wedding for sure." she grinned.

"Thanks." Miley nodded.

"Thanks, Traci. I owe you one." Jake said.

Traci just shrugged and then exited quietly. She'd definitely gotten less annoying since the last time she and Miley had spoken, but Miley didn't say anything. Instead, she just pulled herself closer to Jake with a content sigh.

"I was worried sick, Miley." he whispered, his hands coming up to hold her face. He frowned slightly. "Have you been crying?" he asked.

Miley closed her eyes and pondered over her answer. If she said yes, he'd ask why, and she'd have to tell him about the song. And then Jake would find Jesse and kill him. She shook her head slightly.

"No, I think my make up irritates my eyes, they've been watering nonstop." Miley said, keeping her eyes closed. Jake leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead and the feeling was so incredibly familiar that Miley thought she was going to faint. "Kiss me." she ordered.

Jake paused for a second, most likely confused at her urgent tone, but then he leaned down and their lips met for a moment before Miley basically attacked him.

It didn't last long however, because as soon as his tongue slid in between her lips, he jerked backwards as if she'd burnt him.

"What? What's wrong?" Miley asked.

"Oh my God..." Jake muttered, covering his mouth.

"Jake, what? What is it? What's wrong?" Miley asked frantically, wondering if she'd bitten him.

"You kissed him, didn't you?" he asked, his tongue moving around in his mouth.

Miley froze and she suddenly felt incredibly nauseated.

"What?" she asked meekly.

"You did!" Jake shouted, making Miley flinch. "You didn't think I wouldn't be able to tell that you tasted different? If I kissed Traci, you'd know! You kissed Jesse!"

"Jake, please, you're going to wake up the whole place!" Miley whispered.

"SCREW the neighbors!" Jake shouted even louder. "Did you kiss him?" he added in a quieter tone.

He already knew. She couldn't lie to him. Miley looked away and nodded slowly.

"Dammit, Miley! What the hell?" Jake yelled.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" Miley cried.

"What? What? You didn't _mean_ to? What, you fell and he caught you with his_ face_?!" Jake screamed, making Miley cower into the kitchen counter, praying that it would open up and eat her in one big gulp.

"No, that's not what I meant!" Miley said, covering her face. "I just-I- It wasn't planned! I didn't go there wanting to kiss him."

"You just wanted to kiss him when you got there, is that it?" Jake asked, his hands on his hips.

"No! Of course not! I just meant that it wasn't on purpose, or planned, or...whatever!" Miley spat, raking her fingers through her hair frustratedly.

"Well, what the hell happened?" Jake asked, advancing on her, causing her to cower some more into the counter, the edge of it digging into her back painfully. She was sure it would leave a mark.

"I was just-we were-He sa-he sang this song! And it was for me and-and I was leaving and he kissed me!" Miley shouted.

Jake stared at her for a second before turning away abruptly. "I'll fucking kill him." he said angrily, heading towards the door.

"Jake! Jake, stop!" Miley said, running to stand in front of the door. "Don't!" she ordered, pointing her finger at him like he was a two-year-old.

"You're my fiance, Miley! He can't just kiss you!" Jake shouted. Miley was at least relieved that his anger had gone from her to Jesse, but the fact that he was now going to beat Jesse to a pulp wasn't exactly what she wanted.

"I know that, and he knows that now! I left as soon as it happened. He knows I'm pissed, Jake." Miley said, holding his face and forcing him to look at her.

Jake stared at her for a second before shaking his head. "Miley, I can't-" he stuttered. "How long did you kiss him?" he asked suddenly.

She blinked. "What?" she asked.

"How long did you kiss him?" he repeated.

"Wha- I- I don't know!" she said. "I didn't take a timer out.

"Longer than five seconds?"

Yes, her brain shouted. "Probably not. I was caught off guard...I didn't know what to do at first." she said, looking down.

"But you pushed him away?" he asked.

A lie or the truth? Miley looked up into Jake's eyes, and she saw the pain and anger in them. If she told him the truth, what would he do? Would he leave? Would he cancel the wedding? He'd kill Jesse for sure...

"Yes." she said firmly.

Jake sighed with relief and immediately pulled Miley into a snug embrace. She wrapped her arms around him automatically, closing her eyes to keep the tears at bay.

"Did you punch him like you should have?" he asked suddenly and Miley snorted, shaking her head.

"No. No physical harm done." she said softly.

"Lucky bastard...wait till I get my hands on him." he muttered, holding her tighter.

"Jake, don't. He's...not worth it." she said, a lump forming in her throat.

Saying those words about Jesse, even after everything that had happened, felt like betrayal, but she knew that it was what Jake wanted to hear.

A few minutes later, they got ready for bed and Jake fell asleep almost instantly, his arm around Miley's waist, tucking her against his chest. Miley was awake for a while, contemplating. Jesse was in love with her. He'd told her himself. She shook her head at herself. It didn't change anything. She loved Jake. Sturdy, reliable, dependable Jake. Jake that would always love her no matter what, but she knew that even if he loved her, he would probably leave if he ever found out what had really gone on tonight.

She fell asleep, but her dreams were blurs of Jesse and Jake, and it wasn't a restful night.

* * *

Apologies! A MILLION apologies! I've had a recent tragedy, and I was out of commission for a while, but have no fear! I'm back!


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